Nobody is Born a Saint – Wise Words Wednesday

When it comes to being far from perfect, I’ve got imperfection in the spades. I often beat myself up for having so many flaws and petty insecurities. It’s tough being human. (Do you ever get down on yourself for being less than perfect?)

In his homily this past Sunday, Fr. Tony addressed the challenge that is posed to us by All Saints Day. With tremendous understanding and the right amount of humor, Fr. Tony reminded us that the canonized saints were human too. They struggled with jealousy, anger, fear, and weakness (among other things). In his narrative, Fr. Tony dared us to be like the saints. His All Saints Day challenge is to live with love, compassion, and faith at the center of our thoughts and actions in spite of our struggles.

Nobody is born a saint, but we all have the power to be saintly in our words and works. In the bulletin “Message from Fr. Tony,” he thoughtfully stated, “The simple but reassuring fact is that nobody was born a saint. It’s something we have to strive to become… All Saints Day calls us to something beautiful. It reminds us of our great potential – the promise that lies within each of us. The promise of holiness.”

I don’t know about you, but this reminder to make opportunity from fallibility was a positive one for me. Our halos are probably a little crooked, but there are limitless ways to make them shine a little brighter. We just have to look beyond what makes us imperfect, and set our sights on ways to live with meekness, humility, mercy, generosity, and peacefulness.

In taking on the task of living up to the lives of those saints gone before us, give yourself some grace and room to grow in your outlook. Take on an attitude of acceptance and respects so as to join the ranks of those we consider saintly.

By: Melanie A. Peters

P.S. “Dare to be more. Dare to be a saint.” – Tagline from “Message from Fr. Tony” (at least I think it should be the tagline) #FrTonyRocks #CommunionofSaints #PerfectImperfection